Alarm clock



y 8, 935 c. JAUCH 2,002,998

ALARM CLOCK Filed April 6, 1933 2 Sheets-Sheot l Patented May 28, 1935ALARM GLCK Christian Jauch, Winsted, Conn. assignor to William L.Gilbert Clock Company, Winsted,

Conn. a corporation of Connecticut Application April 6, 1933, Serial N0.664,730

3 Claims.

This invention relates to alarmclocks and. has particular reference toalarm mechanism for giv- Ing a. more or less gentle audible signal a.tthe predetermined time in order to wake the sleeper "5 without undulystartling him, and a subsequent more or lass violent audlble signal tostir the sleeper into activity should he not hear or ignore thepreliminary or gentle Signal.

The ai1n of the invention is to provide an a1arm mechanism of this sorthaving various features of novelty and advantage andwhich isparticularly characterized by its low cost of manufacture, Itssimplicity in construction, and 1ts reliability in operation.

Other objects will be in part obvious and in part pointed out more indetail hereinafter.

'Ihe invention accordingly consists in the features of construction,combination of elements and arrangement of parts which Will beexemplified in the construction hereinafter set forth and the scope ofthe application of which will be indixzated in the appended c1aims.

In the accompanying drawings, wherein is shown, for illustrativepurposes, one embodiment which the present invention may take:

Figure 1 is a rear view of the clock mechanism;

Fig. 2 is a view looking at the frohi. end of the alarm mechanism;

Fig. 3 1s a side view 015 what is shown in Fig. 1;

and

Referring I:o Izhe drawings in detail, the clock may have the usua1froni: frame or plate I0, a back upper plate II, and a back 1ower plateI2 spaced rearwardly of the plate II, theplates being held in spacedrelation by the usua1 pillars I3. 'Ihe plates carry the usual time trainof gears which may be of any suitable construction and arrangement and;therefore, is not shown in detail. This time train may be driven by atime main spring I4 and may have the usual center or minute arbor I5and. an hour wheel I6 driven from. the shafi; I5 through a minute wheelI'I.

The letter B designates a hell (shown in broken lines, Fig. 3) which,when struck, will give an audible signal and, associated with this hell,are two hammers 20 and 2I, the former of which is actuated with arelatively s1ow movexnent so as to give a more or less preliminarygent1e audible signal and the latter of which is actuated w1'th a fastmovement or beat so as to give a more violent signal after the hammer 20has given its initial sinal.

resilient arm 22 extending from a rock shaft 23 which is journalled inthe plates I0 and II and which has a projecting finger 24 adapted toengage a pillar I3 in order to limit movement of the hammer 20 towardsthe hell. A spring 25 coi1ed about ehe rock shaft 23 and having itsopposite ends connected to the finger 24 and the pll1ar I3,respectively, is provided for resiliently urging the harnmer 20 towardsthe hell. 'I'he fast alarrn hammer 2I is carried by a depending arm 26projecting from a r0ck shaft 21 journalled in the plates I0 and I I andhaving a limited axial movement relative to those plates for a purposehereinafter described more in detail. 'I'he hammer 20 is operated by anactuating wheel 28 having ratchet teeth 20 with which cooperates a rod30 projecting radially from the rock shaft 23. The fast hammer 2I isoperated by a crown or escapement wheel 3I with which cooperates analarm verge 32 fixed to I;he rock shaft; 2'I.

The hammer actuating members 28 and 3I are driven through an alarm trainby a single source of power, such, for example as an a1arm main spring35, one end of which is fixed in the usual manner to an alarm ind arbor36 journalled in the plates I0 and II. Loose upon the alarm Wind arboris a main wheel 31 and fixed to the arbor is a ratchet wheel 30cooperating with a spring pressed pawl 39 carried by the main wheel 3'I.With this arrangement, the alarm main spring may be wound up by turningthe arbor in one direction without turning the main wheel, and the mainwheel will rotate With the arbor when the latter is driven in theopposite direction by the main spring. In like manner the hammeractuaoing wheel 28 is associated with the arbor 36 by a ratchet wheel 40and a spring pressed pawl II. In order to control the speed at which thealarm t:rain is driven by the spring 36, the usua1 air fly 42 isprovided, the same being carried by a shaft 43 journalled in ehe backplates II and I2. The fly shaft 43 is driven from the main wheel 31through a lautem pinion 44, wheel 45, 1antern pinion 46, shaft; 4'I andthe cooperating wheels and pinions 48-49, 505I and 5253. The shaft 4'I,which is rotated ab a faster speed than the wind arbor 36, carries thecrown or escapement wheel 3I for actuating the fast hammer 2I.

Any suitable settable means operatively counected to the time movementmay be employed Tor controlling the operation of the a1arm train inorder that the alarm may be given at any desired time. By way cfexample, the means is here shown as comprising an alarm cam 60 and asettable carn finger Ei oooprating with the oam. I'he cam 68 is fixed.to a wheel 62 meshing With the minute wheel i1 so that the cam will makeone revolution during every twelve hours, for example. The cam has theusual helical cam edge provided with a notoh 63 in which the finger 611is adaptecl to engage after the high point of the cam ri des from underthe fingen 'Ihis finger is staked to the forward end of the usual alarmset shaft 6%, the extreme forvvarcl endet which may be provideol with anindicating hand (not shown). The unit comprising the cani 69 and. thewheel 62 is slidably mounted 011 the forward end of the set Shaft 654anal is normally urged forwardly towards the finger 61 by a resilientcontrol lev er 85 which is here shovvn as being in the form of a springstrip, one end of which is fixed to the frontplate, as at E55, anti thefree endof which is bent rearwardly, as at 67. The end 67 oi the oontrollever is adapted to eoop'erate With a suitable stop lnger 58 on thearbororshaft Q! for preventing rotation of the alarm train.

As' previously stateol, the rock shaft 27, which carriesthe fast harnmerancl the alarm verge 32, is mounteolfor 'axial movenient, the purpose ofsuch movement being to permit theverge to be movedinto and out ofoperative relationto the crowrl er esoapem'ent Wheel 3I. In order to somoVe the rock shaft, there is provided, rearwardly 01 the-back plate H,.a cam wheel 15 having an arc'zuate slot 76 in whioh is adaptedto engagea taperecl stud E! carried by a spring 8 one end of which isfixed to theback plate H, as at E9. The oth'er en. of this spring is forked. toprovide a pair of arms il Which engage in the groove of a collar 8lfixed to the rock shaft 2I. When the stud H is engaged in the arouateslot ES, the spring 78 urges the rook shaft 27 forwardly so as to engagethe verge With the esoapement wheel 3 i. When the stucl engages theunslotted. portion of the cam wheel 75 whioh is between the ends of theslot, the rock shaft is held in a rearward position in:whicli the vergeis out of operative relation to the escapement wheel. 'Ihe oam wheel 15has gear teeth 75 on its periphery whih mesh With a pinion 82 fixed to awheel or gear 83 which meshes With a srn'all pinion' 84 fixeol to thealarrnwind shaft 36. The periphery of the "cam wheel 75 has a blank oruntoothed. prtion I" which acts as a stop for limiting the extent ofrotary movement of the cam wheel. 'Ihe operation of the meohanism isbriefly as follows: T0 Wind up the alarm main spring, the Winding shaftis turned counterclookwise, reference being had to Fig. l, and, when soturned, the Garn Wheel l5 will loe turned Counterelookwise until theblank portion 'i5" of the eam wheel engages the teeth of the srnallpinion 82.- At this time, the Inain spring is fully wouncl up anal thestu.d H 'ngages the unslotted portion o1? the cam wheel so that theverge is held rearwardly out of operative relation to the escapementwheel 3i.- The alarm set lever may be turned so as to set the alarm inthe usual manner. It is', of course, understoool that the rearvvardlyturned end of the control lever %5 will be in the path ofthe stop finger58 and thus prevent turning of the alarm train so long as the set finger61 is not in the notch 63 0f the cam 6'i). When the time 'arrives forthe alarm to go off, the oam Ei! will haveturnr'ed to the positionwherethe finger 55 may engage in the notch 63, whereupon the enol 6i of thecontrol lever 65 is free to move forvvardly out of engaging positionWith the stop finger 558 and that finger now being released,

the alarm train will be driven by the main spring 35. This means thatthe shaft 36 is rotated with the hammer actuating wheel 28 so that theteeth 29 of that wheel will cause the hamrner 20 to tap the hell, theintervals between the taps being relatively long. Thus, a gentle erwarning signal is given to the sleeper without uncluly startling him.When the arbor 36 is tu'rned, the oam wheel for the fast alarm is alsoturned bot, for an appreciable period or time, the stud 77 Will be inengagement With the unslotted portion of the cam wheel, thus allowingthe gentle 'signal to sound Tor some time before the fast alarm comesinto play; When the oam wheel has been turned to such an angle that theslot therein' registers With' the stud. H, this stud will move into theslot 'and, therefore, the spring arm 18 Will push the rock shaft 21forwarolly thereby bringing the verge 32 into operative relation withthe'teeth 011 the escapemen't or crown wheel 3I. These teeth will nowrock the verge with a rapid or vibrating movement, thereby eausing thehammer 2 i whic'h has also'been movecl into operative relation tothehell, to strike the hell quite rapidly and thusgive a more 0rlessviolent signal Which the sleeper will be unable to ignore. The alarmmay be manually shut off by pressing downward- 1y on a shut-off rocl9having a depencling finger 91 adapted.to lie in'the path ofrotation ofthe air fiy This shut-oif rod may be mounted for sliding movent1ent inany suitable manner as, for example, by.rneans of screws 52extendingloosely through elongatecl slots in the rod."When the alarm spring isagain wound up, the, oam wheel 75 is turne'cl to the position shown inFig. 1 so that, 011 theynext operation of the alarm,the slow hammer willfirst be Operated and. then the fast hammer, as just described.

As many.changes could. be made in the above construction anol manyapparently widely different embodiments of this invention could. be madewithout departing from the soope thereof, it is intendecl that allmatter containecl in the above :description or shown in the accompanyingdrawings' shall be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limitingsense.

' It is also to be underfstood that the 'language used. in thefollovving claims is intended to co ver all of the generic andsp'ecific, features of the invention herein deseribed anol allstatements of the scope of the inVention which,'as a matterof langu'age,might be saiclto fall therebetween.- 1

I claim as my invention:

1. In an alarm olock, a hammer for gii'ling a gentle audible Signal,actuating means for imparting a slotv beat to said hammer, a sedond.ha'mmer for giving a more disturbing signal, actuating means forimpai*ting a fast 'beat to saicl seconcl hammer, driving means 'oornmonto both of said hammer actuating means, said second mentionedactuatingmeans including an actuatingpart and an aotuatecl part relativelymovable into and out of'operative relation, nd means driven in timedrelation to said first mehtioned aotuating means for controlling saidsecond a'ct1iating means.

2. In an alarm clock, a hammer for giving.

gentle audible Signal, actuating means for im-.

driven in timed relation to saicl first mentioned 7 actuating means andhaving an arcuate slot, and a stud on said spring adapted to engage insaid slot, said spring When the stud is engaged in said slot maintainingsaid part in operative position am]. the unslotted portion of said cambeing employed to hold said part in imperative position.

3. In an alarm clock, a hammer f0r giving a gent1e audible signal,actuating means for imparting a s1ow beat to said hammer, a secondhanimer for giving a more disturbing signal, actuating means forimparting a fast beat to said second hammer and including a toothedwhee1 and. a. verge cooperating therewith, driving means for said firstactuating means and said toothed wheel, an axially movab1e rock shaftcarrying said verge and said. second mentioned hammer, a spring normallyurging said shaft 150 a position where said verge is engaged With saidtoothed wheel, and a cam for moving said verge into imperative positionwith respect to said toothed wheel.

CHRISTIAN JAUCH.

